As we were closing up the church at the conclusion of ministry programming last Sunday night, an energetic fourth grade girl starting talking to me about her "living relationship with Jesus Christ."Music to my ears. See, in the fall of 2011 -- after a year of talking,...
Have ever considered that question?If you were to add up all the times you've heard certain songs -- whether on the radio, in concert, or via turntable/cassette deck/CD player/iPodPhonePad -- which tune would end up on top?And it's not only frequency but duration that...
In preparing yesterday's message (which took place about six weeks ago), the flavor of the entire series got turned around.Huh?Well, in getting the first three messages ready, I had pretty pedestrian sermon titles (Signed, Sealed, Delivered may have been one of...
This week's hidden hero might just be my favorite of them all.(Well, until next week's.)I love the arc of his story. From failure to redemption. From problem to purpose.From Pamphylia to Proclamation.To see what all that means, Sunday.8:30. 10. 11:30.
Although I have lived in and around Charlotte for a quarter century, there are still some typically Charlottean things that I have never done.Some fall into the category of "not yet." Others, "never will."I'll let you try to figure out which is which.Here they...
If you are a United Methodist pastor today, it's because you survived the Board Of Ordained Ministry yesterday.Each of the Annual Conferences (Good Shepherd is in the Western North Carolina Annual Conference) selects its Board to evaluate, test, interview, and...
In case you weren't able to be in worship on Sunday and didn't see yesterday's blog-with-video, here is an architectural fly though of what's coming to Good Shepherd at Moss Road:And then here are the most Frequently Asked Questions about the project and the Beyond...
So yesterday was both a sermon and a major, mega church announcement.Gospel proclamation and congregational reveal all in one place.The first part of the message -- in which I tried to imagine what it was like to be the unsuspecting Archippus and to hear his name read...
This coming sermon concerns a young man but it is about a young church.The young man is Archippus from Colossians 4 -- the same place where we have seen all our other hidden heroes.The young church is Good Shepherd.To see how those two intersect and to hear some of...
As I think back on Wednesday, October 22, 2014 -- that is, yesterday -- I realize with no little gratitude all the different roles I played in one day as pastor of Good Shepherd.First, there was sermon internalizer. Way before I left the house yesterday, I spent...